WCIX
  | |
| Springfield/Decatur, Illinois | |
|---|---|
| Branding |
X 49 WCIA 3 (on DT2) |
| Channels |
Digital: 13 (VHF) Virtual: 49 (PSIP) |
| Subchannels |
49.1 MyNetworkTV 49.2 CBS |
| Affiliations | MyNetworkTV |
| Owner |
Nexstar Broadcasting Group (Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.) |
| First air date | 1982 (originally low-power W49AA 1967-1982) |
| Call letters' meaning | disambiguation from WCIA |
| Sister station(s) | WCIA, WMBD-TV |
| Former callsigns | WCFN-TV (1982–2011) |
| Former channel number(s) |
Analog: 49 (UHF, 1982–2009) Digital: 53 (UHF, 2002–2009) |
| Former affiliations |
CBS (1982-2002, as satellite of WCIA) UPN (2002-2006) |
| Transmitter power | 5 kW |
| Height | 175.5 m |
| Facility ID | 42116 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 39°47′27″N 89°30′53″W / 39.79083°N 89.51472°W |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Public license information: |
Profile CDBS |
| Website | http://illinoishomepage.net/ |
WCIX is the MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station for Central Illinois that is licensed to Springfield. It broadcasts a standard definition digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter east of the city. Owned by the Nexstar Broadcasting Group, the station is sister to CBS affiliate WCIA and the two share studios on South Neil Street (a.k.a. U.S. 45) in downtown Champaign. The two stations also operate a Springfield facility including a newsroom and sales office on East Edwards Street near the Illinois State Capitol along with a newsroom on North Water Street in Downtown Decatur. Syndicated programming on WCIX includes: Family Guy, Everybody Hates Chris, America's Funniest Home Videos, and The Insider. They can also be seen on WCIA's second digital subchannel on UHF channel 48 from a transmitter in Seymour.
History
Before WCIA signed on in 1953, it originally wanted to build its tower in White Heath, near Decatur. The tower would have been placed on some of the highest ground in Central Illinois. However, just after construction began, Prairie Television (owner of WTVP, now WAND) filed an objection. Even though it was obvious that Champaign/Urbana and Springfield/Decatur would be considered a single market, Prairie claimed encroachment by WCIA of their station's territory. To avoid delays, that station moved its transmitter to its current location near Seymour.
WCIA quickly established itself as the dominant station in the region, despite its signal issues in the western half of the market. Eventually, then-owner Midwest Television decided to open a low-powered relay of WCIA on UHF channel 49 to get better coverage in the state capital. That relay launched in 1967 under the calls W49AA. In 1982, it was upgraded to a full-power satellite under the calls WCFN. In both cases, the station was a straight simulcast of WCIA, even airing WCIA's commercials, with the only mention the station existed coming in legal station identification screens and mentions.
In 2002, WCFN broke off from the simulcast to take affiliation with UPN. However, the digital age meant that both stations could simulcast each other's programming over their digital subchannels. Accordingly, the main Channel 49 schedule was added to WCIA-DT2, with Channel 3's schedule airing on WCIX-DT2. The Channel 3 signal is carried on WCIX-DT2 in 1080i HD, while the main WCIX schedule is in 480i standard definition. In September 2006, with ACME Communications's WBUI owned by a former WB network executive taking CW affiliation by default, WCFN took affiliation with MyNetworkTV instead in the wake of the WB/UPN merger.
In early-2007, Nexstar and the Illinois High School Association came to an agreement to carry coverage of IHSA tournaments in the market on Channel 49. Central Illinois had previously been without an over-the-air flagship station for these kind of events. Also, beginning with the 2010-11 NBA season, the station has carried BullsNet, CubsNet, and SoxNet games which air in Chicago on WCIU and are produced by WGN-TV's sports department. The station carried Indianapolis Colts preseason football games beginning with the 2011 season.
Before 2011, the station Labor Day coverage of the US Open from CBS because of WCIA's commitment to air the MDA Telethon. In 2011, the tennis coverage shifted fully to WCIA since the telethon was limited to the night before Labor Day.
On August 29, 2011 the station's callsign was changed to WCIX, call letters formerly used by WFOR-TV in Miami for years until 1995, when that station changed from Channel 6 to Channel 4 and swapped with NBC's WTVJ. The station's logo was changed to resemble that of sister station KARZ-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas, which is also a MyNetworkTV affiliate associated with a Big Three-affiliated station (in that case, KARK-TV).
Digital television
Digital channels
The station's digital channel is multiplexed:
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49.1 | 480i | 4:3 | WCIX-DT | Main WCIX programming / MyNetworkTV |
| 49.2 | 1080i | 16:9 | WCIA-DT | Simulcast of WCIA |
Analog-to-digital conversion
WCIX (as WCFN-TV) shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 49, on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 53, which was among the high band UHF channels (52-69) that were removed from broadcasting use as a result of the transition, to VHF channel 13.[2] Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 49.
Newscasts
WCFN's Primetime News at 9 was launched on April 7, 2005 using the news resources of WCIA. The broadcast originated from that station's Champaign headquarters and was targeted specifically at a Springfield audience. The name was altered to myCFN News at 9 in 2006 to reflect the MyNetworkTV affiliation. In 2009, WCIA announced it would cancel the show and launch an hour long 7 o'clock newscast on weeknights beginning September 28. As a result, MyNetworkTV programming now airs out-of-pattern from 8 to 10. In 2006, WCIA began airing an hour-long extension of The Morning Show on WCFN. In 2007, another hour was added to the show. At the end of the 6:00 hour of the show, viewers are always reminded to flip the channel.
The Morning Show remains the only local morning show in the area from 7-9 a.m. WCIA airs CBS This Morning during this time. The Morning Show's longtime meteorologist and co-anchor, Robert Reese, died on October 9, 2012. He had been suffering from cancer for many years.
The Morning Show on X 49
(Weekday Mornings 7 to 9 a.m.)
- Anchors:
- Cynthia Schwigert
- Drew Wilder
- Weather:
- Lisa Meadows
WCIA 3 News at 7 on X 49
(Weeknights 7 to 7:30 p.m.)
- Anchor:
- Dave Benton
- Weather:
- Derick Fabert
- Sports:
- Aaron Bennett
WCIX features additional news personnel from WCIA. See that article for a complete listing.
References
- ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for WCIX
- ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-03-24.
External links
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